With the 2026 season wrapping up, the Chaska Cubs (25-8) took on the Miesville Mudhens on July 29. The Mudhens, based out of Hastings, won last year’s Minnesota State Baseball Class A championship and entered the game with a 25-3 record and the No. 1 Class A ranking in the state as of July 21.
Sam Tyrpa (R) took the mound for the Cubs and pitched five solid innings. Miesville got on the board first with a two-run home run over the right-field fence in the top of the second inning. The Mudhens featured four left-handed batters in their lineup.
Chaska answered in the bottom of the third. Jordan Larson led off with a single and advanced to third on a Drew Charney double off the right-field wall. Both runners scored on Maddox Foss’s double to left field, tying the game at 2-2 after three innings.
The game remained tied until the fifth inning when Drew Charney was hit by a pitch. (Miesville pitchers hit five Cubs batters during the game.) Charney stole second, advanced to third on a Patrick Fontaine swinging bunt, and scored on a wild pitch to give Chaska a 3-2 lead.
Tyrpa finished his outing after five innings, allowing two runs while striking out four. Anthony Steinhoff came on in relief in the sixth and pitched 1⅓ innings.
The Cubs added to their lead in the sixth when Wyatt Rogers, who had doubled earlier in the inning, scored on a Jordan Larson single.
In the seventh, Patrick Fontaine scored on a long drive by Wyatt Rogers. Rogers finished the game 3-for-4 at the plate.
Leading 5-3 entering the eighth inning, Maddox Foss took over on the mound for the Cubs. Miesville responded with a three-run home run to tie the game at 5-5.
Chaska answered immediately in the bottom of the eighth. Jordan Larson drew a walk before Drew Charney was hit by a pitch, putting two runners on with nobody out. Patrick Fontaine followed with a walk to load the bases. A wild pitch allowed Larson to score the go-ahead run, and Maddox Foss followed with a deep single to left field that drove in Charney and Fontaine, giving the Cubs an 8-5 lead.
Miesville made one final push in the ninth, opening the inning with a double, followed by a walk. With two runners on and nobody out, the next batter popped the ball up to Jordan Larson at third base. The umpire immediately called the infield fly rule, but Miesville’s runner on second apparently did not hear the call and advanced to third. After making the catch, Larson received the throw back from Foss and tagged the runner for a double play. The Cubs then retired the final batter to complete the 8-5 victory and improve to 26-8 on the season.
Manager Bob Poppitz commented after the game.
“They are a good team and fought to the end,” he said. “That was a good win. We didn’t give up, and we got guys on base and around when we needed them.”
Team Captain Griff Wurtz added, “They don’t go away easily. The guys stayed focused and were feeling great as we head into the playoffs.”
The Cubs travel for an away game on July 31 before returning home on Aug. 2 for their final regular-season home game.
They will then face Victoria in the opening round of the playoffs with the first game on Aug. 5 at home. Game 2 will be on Aug. 7 at Victoria and Game 3 on Aug. 9 at Chaska. If necessary, Game 4 will be on Aug. 12 in Victoria and Game 5 Aug. 14 in Chaska. The winner of the best-of-five series advances to the state tournament. Fans are encouraged to check the team’s Facebook page for game dates and times of additional rounds.
